Encyclopedia of The Bible – Second Death
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Second Death

DEATH, SECOND, the tr. of most Eng. VSS of the Gr. phrase ὁ δεύτερος θάνατος, found only in Revelation 2:11; 20:6, 14; 21:8. It refers to the eternal judgment of God upon sin which occurs after physical death. It is therefore synonymous with such other apocalyptic expressions as “lake of fire,” “winepress of wrath,” “darkness,” et al. The phrase is characteristic of the repetitive and reciprocal nature of the structure of Revelation, wherein ordinal numbers e.g. first, second, third, etc., play an important part in its presentation.